A family law judge in Texas is now under investigation after his daughter posted a video of him beating her with a viciously beating her in 2004 for downloading music and games off the internet. The nearly eight minute video shows the judge whipping his daughter with a belt and getting more irate as she refuses to bend over the bed to get beaten.

Hillary Adams, who was 16 at the time of the beating, is the daughter of Aransas County Court-at-Law Judge William Adams and has had ataxic cerebral palsy since birth. She says she posted the video of her father beating her in an effort to prevent him from being re-elected to the bench and in hopes that he would seek help.

In the details of her video post she said, “Judge William Adams is not fit to be anywhere near the law system if he can’t even exercise fit judgement [sic] as a parent himself. Do not allow this man to ever be re-elected again. His ‘judgement’ [sic] is a giant farce.”

She also claimed that the judge had emotionally abused his wife and that the incident she recorded because she knew “something was about to happen,” was part of an ongoing environment of abuse. Mrs. Adams, however, is just as much involved with the controversy as she’s also seen in the video whipping her daughter.

The chief of police in Rockport, TX, where Judge Adams lives, said he opened an investigation when his department started receiving phone calls from concerned citizens who had seen the video. Police Chief Tim Jayroe says he has asked the Texas Rangers to assist in investigating whether or not the video shows any criminal activity.

Judge Adams told a television station in Corpus Christi that he doesn’t believe he did anything wrong and that the video “looks worse than it is.”

“In my mind, I haven’t done anything wrong other than discipline my child after she was caught stealing,” Adams told KZTV on Wednesday. “And I did lose my temper, but I’ve since apologized.”

Despite the judge’s very clear statement, near the end of the posted video, that he will beat his daughter “into submission,” investigators will have to determine if Adams crossed the line between an acceptable level of discipline and child abuse, based on Texas law.

Court records show that Hillary Adam’s parents divorced in 2007 because “the marriage has become insupportable because of discord or conflict of personalities,” according to the petition. A counter-petition filed by Judge Adams’ ex-wife states the divorce was filed under grounds of “mental cruelty.” The couple has another daughter who is ten years younger than Hillary.